Collette will play Ellen, a successful Washington, D.C. surgeon who is selected to operate on the President of the United States. She is pushed into the middle of a political conspiracy when her family is taken hostage, and Ellen must do whatever she can to save her husband and children. Like that other conspiracy political drama, Homeland, Hostages is based on an Israeli show.

Hostages was written by Jeffrey Nachmanoff (The Day After Tomorrow), who will also direct and executive-produce the pilot along with Bruckheimer and Jonathan Littman. Omri Givon, Rotem Shamir and Chayim Sharir, who created the original series, are on board as well. KristieAnne Reed and Alon Aranya will serve as co-executive producers.

If picked up to series, Hostages would mark Collette's first network TV series starring role. She won an Emmy and a Golden Globe for playing a woman suffering from multiple personality disorder in the Showtime series United States of Tara, which was canceled in 2011 after three seasons. Collette is also known for her roles in films such as The Sixth Sense, Little Miss Sunshine and In Her Shoes.